Wednesday, December 7, 2016

Officer Killed in head-on crash on Route 55

MILLVILLE — New Jersey State Police said a
trooper has died in the line of duty after being struck head-on while driving
on Route 55 in South Jersey.

Colonel
Rick Fuentes said Trooper Frankie Williams, 31, of the Port Norris
Station died at Cooper University Hospital in Camden following the incident on
Monday night along the highway in Millville near exit 24 for Route 49. Williams
was responding to a call for service.

A Toyota
Corolla traveling southbound crossed the grass median and went onto
the northbound lanes hitting Williams’ marked cruiser head-on. The driver of
the Toyota was pronounced dead at the scene, according to State Police, who did
not disclose the driver’s identity. An earlier tweet identified the driver as a
woman, but police described the driver as a man in an updated announcement.

The exact cause of death for both still remains
under investigation. Route 55 reopened around 3:45 a.m. Tuesday morning.

Williams was a member of the 156th State Police Class, which graduated
in January, and was a resident of Atlantic County.

Trooper Williams was highly respected by his peers, establishing himself very
early in his career as an outstanding trooper able to think quickly on his feet
and make sound decisions,” State Police wrote on their Facebook page.

North Wildwood flew its flags to half-staff on
Tuesday in Williams’ honor. “I am deeply saddened over the death of NJ State
Trooper Frankie Williams, and I want to make sure that he is honored properly,
as we in North Wildwood stand here today in support and solidarity with the New
Jersey State Police, and Trooper
Williams’ family and friend,” Mayor Patrick Rosenello said in a statement.

Gov. Christie offered condolences and prayers for
Williams’ family in a tweet on Tuesday morning. Bridgeton Police offered
condolences on their Facebook page while NJ State PBA President Patrick
Colligan tweeted “we have lost a hero.”

Williams
was credited last August for getting a toy poodle out of the back of a
hot Mercedes-Benz parked at a Pilesgrove Township store by breaking the window.
He brought the dog, which a vet said was suffering from heat stroke to a shaded
area and poured water over its body and gave the dog some water to drink.

The dog’s owner, a 43-year-old State College, Penn
woman, was charged with animal abuse.

Williams is the second State Police officer to die
in the line of duty in 2016. Trooper
Sean Cullen died after being hit responding to a vehicle fire on Route
295 in Deptford on March 8.